Information

M1911 to M1911A1 comparison pictures.

The 1911 pistol is considered by many gun collectors and veterans to be the greatest self-loading pistol ever made and the grandfather of the modern handgun, which despite its age is still used alongside modern pistols today. Designed by John Moses Browning in 1910 with patent dates going as far back as 1897, the .45 caliber pistol was adopted into the U.S. military arsenal February 14, 1911. Browning had combined traits of his former pistols and built a prototype around the recently-developed .45 ACP round. The end result was the M1911.

Browning sold the pistol to Colt, the first major company that would market the handgun. During initial testing in the military trials, the M1911 fired 1,000 rounds flawlessly, becoming the first self-loading pistol to pass with a 100% grade. After World War I, the military modified the M1911 design to optimize it for combat, adding a slightly larger ejection port, shortening the trigger, extending the grip safety tang to help prevent "slide bite", and adding an arched mainspring housing to allow the gun to better fit in the user's hand. The new firearm was called the Colt M1911A1. Many companies manufactured the M1911 for the U.S. military besides Colt, including Remington and Springfield Armory. The M1911A1's power and reliability kept it in circulation through the Korean and Vietnam Wars before the pistol began showing its age. However, it should be noted that at the time that the military began looking for a new sidearm, no new M1911's had been purchased since 1945 (note; this statement only applies to large contract orders, many small special purpose purchases have been made for 1911 pattern pistols since). In the 1980's, the U.S. Military held new handgun trials, during which they tested numerous pistols, the finalists being the SIG-Sauer P226 and the Beretta 92F. Due to the high price of the SIG-Sauer's magazines, the Beretta 92F was chosen to replace the M1911A1, a highly controversial decision to this day.

The M1911A1 remains alive in the hands of many gun enthusiasts and many U.S. Military special forces. Modern incarnations include models built by Colt, responsible for the M1911A1, Commander and Officers series, and Springfield Armory which faithfully continues building 1911's based on their original designs. Para USA (formally Para-Ordnance) manufactures a number of high-capacity double stack variations, including the P13, P14 and the LDA (Light Double Action). Kimber, who is acknowledged as the first large scale factory mass produced "custom" 1911 manufacturer, produces versions such as the Desert Warrior and the Custom TLE II, variations that are used by some special forces and SWAT teams.

Countless foreign copies are also in circulation, including Llamas, Mausers, and Argentinian clones. Despite being over 100 years old, the 1911 pistol continues to be manufactured with almost no major design changes, and has proven itself as one of the most popular handguns ever made.

Colt Variants

M1911

Original Colt M1911 (dated 1913) - .45 ACP

M1911 - .455 Webley Auto Mk. I, a licensed handgun to the British Armed Forces during and after World War 1, later issued to members of the R.A.F. and Royal Navy

Original Colt M1911 (dated 1912) with pearl grips - .45 ACP

The original M1911 first issued to the U.S. Military during WWI. When identifying, note a smaller ejection port (not visible in photo), smaller grip safety spur, original diamond cut checker wood grips, a flat mainspring housing (on the rear of the grip below the grip safety), longer trigger, lack of trigger finger recess frame cuts, and a larger hammer spur.

The U.S. military was re-issued the 1911 pistol in 1924, now designated the M1911A1. Changes to the gun included a larger ejection port, a shortened trigger, a longer grip-safety spur and slightly shaved hammer spur to prevent hammer bite, serrated front sight, a curved mainspring housing, simplified checkered grips (although diamond grips still appeared on some), and relief cuts around the trigger guard on the frame.

Note: many in the list below could actually be Colt Mark IV Series 70/80 Government Models, Springfield Armory, or another manufacturer, instead of a former military issued M1911A1, unless it is a war film. Since the markings of the gun aren't always clear, M1911A1 is a catch-all term. Being most 1911 manufacturers pistols are based off the M1911A1 platform.

Colt MK IV Series 70

Colt MK IV Series 70 - .45 ACP

Colt MK IV Series 70, Nickel finish - .45 ACP

The Colt MK IV Series 70 was an improvement over the M1911A1/Government Model by redesigning the barrel bushing to grip the barrel and give the production gun much improved accuracy. These "collet" bushings worked well but were prone to breaking due to being smaller than the slide diameter, hence the original bushing was made standard once again in 1988.

The Colt MK IV Series 80 was first produced in 1983 to replace the Series 70 and is notoriously known as the first 1911 to make major improvements to the design. The first major improvement was incorporating a new firing pin block safety system, where a series of internal levers and a plunger positively blocked the firing pin from moving until the trigger was pressed, thus eliminating the possibility of the gun discharging if dropped onto a hard surface or struck hard. The second improvement to the design was adding a re-designed half-cock notch. Instead of the old hook style, the flat-top style was made to eliminate the problem of the hook breaking when the hammer slipped and fell to half cock. You can tell the gun has this feature by pulling the trigger on half cock. If the hammer falls, the gun has this type of half-cock system. Since the hammer doesn't have a sufficient distance to fall on half-cock, the weapon will not discharge. Also the series 80's had three dot sights, unlike the old fashioned iron sights. Much like the Series 70, this gun was also sold with the "collet" type barrel bushing until 1988.

The Gold Cup National Match was a factory produced "custom" version of the Series 70 and Series 80 M1911A1 pistols that was purpose-built for improved accuracy, reliability, and handling in competitive shooting. It is easily recognized by its distinctive Elliason adjustable rear sight, flat topped slide, lightened hollow steel trigger with over-travel stop, and slanted slide serrations. The National Match was also produced in an "Enhanced" model which featured an enlarged "Duckbill" grip safety, skeleton hammer and undercut trigger guard, and were available in both stainless steel and blued carbon steel finishes. The National Match was discontinued in 1996 and replaced by the Trophy model, unfortunately several features of the Trophy rendered the pistol ineligible to compete in the NRA CMP National Matches without modification. For this reason Colt reintroduced a version of the National Match in 2011, however this model is significantly different to the original with a rounded top to the slide, different sights, aluminium 3-hole trigger, and generally less fine of a finish.

Colt XSE

The Colt XSE is a modern Colt 1911 with added front cocking serrations and a few cosmetic changes. A railed model was also introduced which was later renamed the Colt Rail Gun. In 2012 a variant of the Rail Gun was adopted by the US Marine Corps for use by MEU(SOC) units and was designated the M45A1 Close Quarter Battle Pistol, replacing the original M45 pistol which has been in service since the 1980s.

Colt Commander

The Commander model 1911 is basically an M1911A1 with a 4.25" barrel (instead of 5") produced in various styles since 1951, and was chambered in 9x19 mm Parabellum, .45 ACP and .38 Super. There are several versions of the Commander. The original aluminum framed "Commander" was renamed the "Lightweight Commander" in 1970, when the "Combat Commander", an all steel version, was introduced. Later versions include the Colt Commander Gold Cup National Match, the Combat Elite and the Concealed Carry Officer's model, which mated the Commander slide & barrel with the smaller frame of the Colt Officer's Model.

Anime

Auto-Ordnance M1911A1

Auto-Ordnance M1911A1 - .45 ACP. This is a well worn blank adapted movie gun used in multiple World War 2 movies as a substitute for the Colt M1911A1

An Auto-Ordnance M1911A1 with Nickel plated finish and custom pearl grips. This is the screen used gun that was carried and fired by John Travolta in the movie Pulp Fiction

The Auto-Ordnance company is best known for its "Tommy guns", they also manufactured 1911 pattern pistols, at times to varying degree of quality depending on the ownership at time of production. M1911A1s produced by Auto-Ordnance is impossible to differentiate from a genuine M1911A1 at a distance or in the hands of an actor. While they sometimes have a longer trigger, the easiest way to identify it is by the slanted grooves on the slide.

Anime

M45 / MEU(SOC)

M45 (previously MEU(SOC)) Pistol, early version - .45 ACP

M45 (previously MEU(SOC)) Pistol, later version - .45 ACP

Kimber ICQB MEU(SOC) Pistol - .45 ACP

The M45 Pistol (previously called the MEU(SOC) Pistol) is a refurbished and upgraded M1911A1 Pistol and has been the standard issue sidearm for the Force Recon Element of the United States Marine Corps' Marine Expeditionary Units since the mid-1980s. However, it has recently begun to be supplemented, first by the Kimber ICQB Pistol, then by the Colt M45A1 CQBP in 2012.

Amime

SIG-Sauer 1911

Formerly known as the GSR (which stands for Granite Series Revolution), the SIG Sauer 1911 was awarded the 2004 Handgun of the Year Award by the Shooting Industry Academy of Excellence and has various variants on sale.

TJ's Custom Gunworks Stealth-1

The Stealth-1 .45 ACP

Stealth-1, custom built (orginally for a Mr. & Mrs. Smith) by a movie armorer company TJ used to be the smallest .45 caliber 1911 pistol (confirmation needed on what is the smallest currently). It only holds 4 + 1 rounds.

Umarex Colt Government 1911 A1

Umarex Colt Government 1911 A1 - 9mm P.A.K. blanks

Umarex Colt Government 1911 A1 with nickel finish - 9mm P.A.K. blanks

A blank firing replica of the Colt M1911A1 (although with its higher profile sight sand straight mainspring housing it more closely resembles the Colt MK IV Series 80) manufactured by the German company "Umarex" which can be identified by its external extractor (as seen here).

Televison

KWC M1911A1

KWC M1911A1 inspired airsoft gun (sample)

KWC (‘Kien Well Corporation’) is a Taiwanese manufacturer of airsoft guns and markets a wide line of gas and spring powered airsoft guns. Part of their portfolio is a number of airsoft guns inspired by match-versions of the M1911A1, these guns can be identified by the manufacturer initials and ‘Made in Taiwan’ on the right side of the slide just above the forward section of the trigger guard.

Television

Non Firing Replicas

MGC M1911A1

MGC Replica M1911A1.

MGC replica M1911A1 with silver finish

Model Gun Corp of Japan made these excellent all metal replica handguns between the late 1960s and the early 1980s. A batch of original MGC M1911s were discovered and hit the market once again in the early 2000s for a limited time. Despite intentional dimensional differences between it and the real M1911A1, all the parts assemble and disassemble just like the real firearm.